Zim MPs in Kigali on study mission 

Special Correspondent
A seven-member parliamentary delegation is in Kigali on a week-long study visit on the operations of the Rwandese One-Stop Shop model which the country is adopting through the envisaged Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA).

The delegation, which comprises members of the joint Portfolio Committees on Foreign Affairs and International Trade and that of Industry and Commerce, is led by Cde Kindness Paradza, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Portfolio Committee.

The Government gazetted the ZIDA Bill on April 5 this year, with the intention of paving the way for the creation of an investor-friendly environment as well as promoting efficiency in the licensing regime of investors in Zimbabwe.

The Bill is part of the reforms being driven by President Mnangagwa’s administration in promoting the ease of doing business and also as a way of attracting the much-needed foreign direct investment into the country.

Cde Paradza last night told The Herald from Kigali that his team, which also include Hon Joshua Sacco, chairman of Industry and Commerce Committee, had a packed programme that included consultations with Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, Dr Sezibera Richard, the Speaker of Parliament, Retired Honourable Mukabilisa Donatille, as well as meeting top officials in the Rwanda Development Board, the equivalent of ZIDA.

Further discussions will be held with officials from the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and also to exchange notes with fellow MPs who are members of the committees on Foreign Affairs, Co-operation and Security, Economy and Trade.

Midweek, the Zimbabwe delegation will also tour the Special Economic Zones and travel to Bukavu to appreciate the One-Stop Border Post concept between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

ZIDA, which is a replica of the Rwandese model, is seen as a game changer as it will replace and consolidate the current operations of the Zimbabwe Investment Authority (ZIA), the Zimbabwe Special Economic Zones (Zimseza) and the Joint Ventures Unit in the Ministry of Finance.

The close cooperation between Rwanda and Zimbabwe since the advent of the new dispensation in November 2017 has seen Harare officially opening a new fully-fledged embassy in Kigali under Professor Charity Manyeruke as the new ambassador.

Cde Paradza said his delegation returns home on Friday and will use the Rwandese experience to drive the ZIDA agenda in Parliament.